Obama administration concerned about Gaza incident

President Barack Obama
voiced "deep regret" over Monday's deadly Israeli commando raids, and
the White House said he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed by
phone to reschedule White House talks "at the first opportunity."

In
a statement issued by presidential aides in Chicago, where Obama and
his family have been spending the Memorial Day weekend, the president
was said to have "expressed the importance of learning all the facts and
circumstances" surrounding the incident involving aid ships seeking
access to the blockaded Gaza Strip.

"He said he understood the
prime minister's decision to return immediately to Israel to deal with
today's events," the statement said. Netanyahu had been scheduled to
meet with Obama Tuesday at the White House.

At the State
Department, spokesman P.J. Crowley said, "We support expanding the flow
of goods to the people of Gaza. But this must be done in a spirit of
cooperation, not confrontation."

The United States has been trying
to restart direct peace talks between the Israelis and Palestinians,
but progress toward this achievement has lagged severely in recent
months. At least nine people were killed and dozens wounded in the
incident Monday.

The raid brought heightened attention to Israel's
blockade of the Gaza Strip, imposed after the Palestinian militant
group Hamas seized control of the tiny Mediterranean territory in 2007.
The blockade — along with Israel's fierce offensive against Gaza in the
winter of 2008-2009 to stop Hamas rocket fire — has fueled anti-Israeli
sentiment around the Arab world.

Obama, who has been pushing to
reinvigorate the peace process, also has a meeting scheduled here June 9
with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

In a statement last
week, the White House said that Obama and Abbas planned to discuss the
ongoing Israeli-Palestinian proximity talks and ways the U.S. can work
with both parties to move into direct talks. They also will discuss U.S.
efforts to support the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Obama
and fellow Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel discussed the need for a renewed
Middle East peace process earlier this month during a private lunch at
the White House.

Speaking to reporters afterward, Wiesel said the
meeting was a "good kosher lunch" between friends. But he said the
conversation did turn serious, as the two Nobel Peace Prize winners
discussed the administration's attempts to break the deadlock in the
Israel-Palestinian peace talks.

Obama's meeting with Wiesel, a
strong supporter of Israel, comes during a period of strained relations
between the U.S. and Israel. The author said he believes tensions
between the two countries are lessening.

Wiesel survived the Nazi
concentration camps at Auschwitz and Buchenwald. Last June, when Obama
visited Germany, Wiesel accompanied the president on a tour of
Buchenwald.

Relations between the two countries were tested when
Israel announced plans for additional settlements in a part of Jerusalem
that Palestinians consider as the likely capital of a new Palestinian
state. The announcement came as Vice President Joe Biden and his wife,
Jill, were preparing to have dinner with Netanyahu, in an incident that
turned out to be an embarrassment for the Israeli leader.